Sarah Kellen Testifies House Oversight Committee on Jeffrey Epstein Abuse and Ghislaine Maxwell Probe

Sarah Kellen, a former personal assistant to Jeffrey Epstein, testified Thursday in a closed-door deposition before the House Oversight Committee about her yearslong connection to the convicted sex offender and said she was a target of his abuse as she managed logistics of his relations with girls and young women.

Kellen told lawmakers, "I was trapped inside Jeffrey Epstein's world," describing how Epstein "groomed me, sexually and psychologically abused me, controlled me, manipulated me, dominated me, and gaslit me until I could no longer tell which thoughts were mine and which were his."

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The House Oversight Committee took her deposition as part of its ongoing investigation into the federal government's handling of cases involving Epstein and his former girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell.

PBS reported that Kellen’s name appears in recent files released by the Department of Justice, and that she has denied wrongdoing while her lawyers told MS NOW she continues to endure harassment and threats since her name was made public.

Republican Rep. James Comer, chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, said before Kellen’s testimony that members of both parties were split on whether to consider her a survivor or an accomplice in Epstein's abuses.

In a separate account of Kellen’s testimony, NewsNation said she told members of the House Oversight Committee three names she says were connected to the abuse of young girls: hair mogul Frederic Fekkai, Philip Levine, former mayor of Miami Beach from 2013 to 2017, and fashion photographer Patrick Demarchelier, who is deceased.

NewsNation quoted Mark Herr, a representative for Fekkai, saying, "Mr. Fekkai never abused anyone. He never participated in any illegal behavior."

ABC News

The Miami Herald confirmed that Kellen testified she was sexually assaulted by former Miami Beach mayor and 2018 Florida gubernatorial candidate Philip Levine, and that she named two other men, Frédéric Fekkai and Patrick Demarchelier, whom she alleged were also involved in abusing her.

The Miami Herald also reported that Comer called Kellen "very believable, intelligent and brave," and said the interview was the first time a victim had testified about Epstein before Congress.

Kellen, 46, was not sworn in to testify for the interview conducted behind closed doors, and the Miami Herald said it is against the law to lie to Congress, so she can be prosecuted if her statements are found to be untrue.

Kellen’s testimony came as the House Oversight Committee’s inquiry followed the release of more than three million pages of Epstein-related files earlier this year, and MS NOW said Comer described her appearance as "the most substantive" testimony to date.

“Epstein Case: Who Is Ghislaine Maxwell, Sentenced to 20 Years for Sex Trafficking - By Jon Kelly - Role: BBC News - Published Ghislaine Maxwell has been sentenced to 20 years in prison in the United States for having helped former financier Jeffrey Epstein to abuse young girls”

BBC

MS NOW reported that Kellen denied she was an accomplice and instead portrayed herself as a victim amid renewed scrutiny of Epstein’s inner circle, saying she was abused by Epstein and that she was "a literal indentured slave" to him.

In her prepared remarks, Kellen said she was recruited for the job as Epstein's assistant by a co-worker at a hotel in Hawaii, and ABC News reported that she claimed that after a divorce and ex-communication from her church, she was "a perfect target" for Epstein.

ABC News also said Kellen told the committee that "No one from law enforcement ever spoke with me, ever heard my side, ever asked me a single question," and that she did not know her name was in the 2007 non-prosecution agreement until it was made public.

The Guardian reported that Kellen said articles labeling her as "Ghislaine's Lieutenant" are a "gross misrepresentation," and it quoted her saying, "I was a literal indentured slave; in fact, she even referred to me as her slave and minion."